We would like to thank Melanie Cornish and the staff over at Hip Hop DX for this opportunity.

Exclusive: The veteran producer explains
balancing time between touring and the studio, and his recent credits with Chris Brown, T.I. and Young Jeezy.

When you
take on the moniker of one of the world’s most revered composers,
chances are you are packing in the musical department yourself. This
Bronx born musician aligned himself with former PC alum, none other than
Deric "D Dot" Angelettie and eventually took on a role that his mentor
had himself earned a decade earlier.
Antwan "Amadeus" Thompson has crafted the soundscapes for the list of
urban artists, including Young Jeezy, Mike Jones, Cherri Dennis, Danity
Kane, but his recent role, which he utilized his Bronx hustler
mentality to secure, is what has him racking up the miles. The role of
music director to Trey Songz has seen this family man travel the globe,
not only with the Atlantic R&B crooner but with the likes of Usher
and Jay-Z.

Able to bring his creativity to a live audience in such a role is an
extension of what Amadeus has always advocated. Paying homage to the
crews that he hopes his Platinum Boy entertainment can replicate in this
interview, this genuinely appreciative and hardworking New Yorker is
living proof that the good guys really don’t finish last.

HipHopDX: What exactly is a music director?Amadeus: It is my job to take Trey [Songz'] vision
for his shows and his performances and bring them to life. It’s my
responsibility to choose band members, schedule rehearsals, choose the
songs we are going to need and to work in conjunction with production
and lighting, in regard to his ideas, entrances, exits and what songs we
are going to perform. It’s very intensive and hands on with Trey and
the band members. It’s about building the entire show you see when you
come and see him perform basically.

DX: How much preparation goes into the tour before you actually get on the road?Amadeus: Definitely a lot of management, from the
production to the booking of shows in the various cities; that is the
first thing of course, which isn’t necessarily my job. Once there is a
green light in regards to the tour happening, that’s when I come in to
discuss the vision and what we are looking to do. On this last tour,
which was the Anticipation Tour, it was all about showcasing songs from
his mixtapes, so we chose a variety of songs from the tapes which we
thought the audience would want to hear live and combined those with the
hit songs everyone around the world knows, that’s the first step. After that we are locked into rehearsals for two weeks, 12-12 each
day with Trey and the band. A lot of preparations goes into touring.
When people are spending their hard earned money they can see now what
goes into putting on a tour like this. We work really hard to provide
them with the best show possible.

DX: How did you meet Trey then, were you producing for him?Amadeus: The time we met I was working on Mike Jones’ [The Voice]
album and we had a song called "I Know." Mike and I sat down and we
were talking about putting a male R&B artist on there. We threw out
Usher and Tyrese, Omarion and then we threw out Trey Songz and we felt
that Trey’s style and image fit the direction we wanted to go in with
the song. He was down to do it. Mike was signed to Warner [Bros.
Records] and Trey is signed to Atlantic [Records] so they were under the
same umbrella. We all went to Houston where we recorded the song and
mixed the song and in the studio, there was a drum kit and I was telling
the guys I played the drums and these guys were like, "No, you don’t"
and I explained I was a musician first and we threw a few jokes back and
forth and I said, "Eventually you are going to need a band behind you,"
and left it at that and off we went in our own directions. But then a
year later I got a call from his manager asking if I was ready to put
Trey’s band together. That came from me saying something in the studio
and here I am five years later on, Trey’s only ever Music Director.

DX: Where have you been on the Anticipation Tour?Amadeus: We ended in Nashville; we played New York,
[Washington] DC, L.A., New Jersey and a few more. After we did the last
show we had a minute to look back on what we had accomplished, as when
you are on the road it’s all about going forward. It was then we
realized we had actually done 10 tours together. We’ve been all over, US
tours with Usher, Jay-Z, an Australian tour with Usher and Trey has done a couple of his own tours overseas.

DX:
Being that this has become such a huge part of your life, how does this
interfere with your production, as this is obviously another huge
dimension to you as the last time we spoke you had been signed to
Diddy’s Hitmen?Amadeus: I wouldn’t say it interferes, it somewhat
takes me from it a little. Obviously being on the road, you can’t be in
two places at the same time and I’m not obviously in the studio. But
what’s good is when you work hard and you are creating music, I had
enough music created where I was just able to get it placed on various
albums whilst still being out on the road. I had placements on albums
[and mixtapes] from T.I., Young Jeezy,
Chris Brown and a lot of this came about when I was on the road. When I
came in I would just lock myself in the studio. But I have got to see
places I never thought I would see and the best part being I got to do
this and it not being on my own expense. [Laughs] I met a lot of people
and artists, you know Jay-Z, Usher, Big Sean
and I got to connect with these guys and give them some music. I have a
lot in the pipeline and there’s a lot of music people haven’t heard.

DX: You’re self-managed right?Amadeus: I was for a long time, but that changed when I got down with the Bad Boy Management situation. Bad Boy Hitmen are basically producers managed by Bad Boy.

DX: So you’re still signed?Amadeus: Yes, that’s the management situation, but
before that I was on my own. Being a part of Bad Boy, I’m still the same
person in regards to not letting opportunities pass me by.

DX:
Well, let me ask you this as people always go on about Diddy not doing
things for them when they are signed to him in whatever way. When you
look at him and how he came up, he certainly didn’t have things handed
to him on the proverbial silver platter. Do you think that that is what
he is looking for when he signs people to the label, people who are able
to be self-sufficient?Amadeus: That is a great question. I couldn’t say
that any better as that’s exactly how I feel. You have to show and prove
and that is the same with everybody, the artist deals, producer deals.
You can’t just sign on the dotted line and then watch everything fall
into place. It’s the total opposite, even though you signed on the
dotted line and your name is now connected with Diddy and Bad Boy
[Records] and you wear that brand, you can’t just sit back, I had to
work harder when that deal came about. Diddy has earned and created a
lot of what he has on his own and I look at that as inspiration. Of
course if I need something that is there or things given, of course I am
going to take them, but as I always say, no one will work harder for
you than you.

DX: How did the Bad Boy situation come about?Amadeus: At the age of about 16 I got to connect with Deric "D Dot" Angelettie
and he became my mentor; he was there to lead and direct me in my
production. I got to meet Bobby Springsteen who was A&Ring at Bad
Boy at the time; he put me in the studio with Heavy D. So I was always
in the cipher with the likes of Harve Pierre, who is now president [of
Bad Boy Records] and of course Conrad Dimanche. Then I realized you
really get the attention when you do things in-house, like when I landed
a placement on Cheri Dennis’s [In And Out Of Love] album, working with Danity Kane and Day 26
when they were there, that all brought awareness. They saw I was doing
things and knew that I didn’t have proper representation and the door
was opened. And it was like, why not? We just sat down, came up with a
plan and moved forward and I became a part of the Bad Boy Hitmen
production team.

DX: But you had got to this point without management so was it just pure determination that pushed you along?Amadeus: I feel it’s the passion to music itself and
for me wanting to create more music, that’s the thing I feel motivates
me to keep going. As you grow, mature and become a man they way you look
at things different. Then versus now? I was excited to be going on
spending sprees and buying 20 pairs of sneakers. You do that and then
you grow up and you realize, "I have a wife, a son, a home and all these
things I need to take care of." So your way of thinking changes. This
isn’t a game, I love doing it but now I take it a lot more serious as
this allows me to eat, take care and provide for my family. That alone
gives you the determination to keep pushing forward no matter what. Even
though I’m in this situation with Bad Boy, that hustler mentality never
left. I’m my own publicist, all the endorsement deals I get for
touring, I get those by finding out who does what and securing deals for
cymbals and drums, I do all that and enjoy doing it.

DX:
So the grass is not always as green as you think it might be on the
other side, you have to put that work in regardless. What is in the
cards for you with Platinum Boy, your own set up?Amadeus: You know that all started one day sitting
in ASCAP and I was thinking about a name I needed for my company and
well I want all the records I make to be platinum and being that I am
male, from there I got Platinum Boy. It’s grown over the years, I have
Tiffany Mynon, we call her "the angel of R&B" and we have producers
and writers. I have learned through my years in this business that you
don’t have to do everything yourself, you can put together an ill team
and where everyone has their areas of expertise and create some amazing
music, just like the original crews. When you look back at the Hitmen,
Ruff Ryders, Murder Inc., everyone had a crew, everyone had a job to do
and from there they came together and made great music.

DX: How do you balance it all when you have obviously been out on the road so much lately?Amadeus: I have a partner Ro Garcia, who isn’t
really involved with the creative process, the making music, etc. but in
terms of getting the business done, he does that.

DX:
Was it easy to find someone to off load to as you have already stated
in this interview that no one works harder for you than you?Amadeus: We were friends first as we went to the
same church and he has watched me grow and wanted to be a part of that.
He supported everything I was doing and it has just grown from there.
He comes up with ideas how to market the Platinum Boy brand and how to
get our artists out. He does what I can’t do, he’s there holding
everything together. It works but I am still happy to do the groundwork
as that is the person I am and that will never change.

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About Us

Platinum Boy Music was founded in the year 2000 by musician and multi platinum record producer Antwan 'Amadeus' Thompson. The production company has since been able to expand to include the Music 101 College Tour Seminar. Platinum Boy Music is a tightly knit family not only comprised of talented individuals, but a brand focused on providing the world with quality music.

PBM Profile: Amadeus

Antwan 'Amadeus' Thompson is the CEO of Platinum Boy Music. His music catalog includes production credits for over 50 artists, the theme song to ESPN's First Take, Keyshia Cole's BET Reality Show "Family First", ESPN's Sportscenter, Diddy's MTV and VH1 reality shows, EA Sports Fight Night, and Burger King. Amadeus recently served as a panelist on Making His Band and is currently the Music Director/Tour Drummer for Trey Songz.

PBM Profile: Ro Garcia

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Platinum Boy Music CEO Amadeus is seeking for Songwriters, Producers, and Web Designers to join his musical imprint Platinum Boy Music, Inc. Please note that ALL considerations will ONLY be reviewed through Blazetrak, with a GUARANTEED video response to all of your submissions.